Analyzing "Facing It" written by :Yusef Komunyakaa

What does the title mean?

• It is a glimpse into the authors mindset.
• Facing it allows us to think that he is facing a problem.
• People face a problem or a fear head on.
• The author is wanting us to be ready for his fear or problem.
• The author wants us to think about what we are about to face.

What is the poem about?

"Facing It" is telling a story of a person who is visiting the Vietnam War Memorial. Every time that he is looking at the names on the Memorial he is seeing his friends and himself fighting side by side. In the poem it says "Half-expecting to find my own letters in smoke". He has a personal connection to these names. Instead of just walking by he is morning the lost of his friends and comrades. Everywhere he goes and every name that he touches is more real to him then the last. For a time every person that visits the wall is a part of the wall for a little while. As soon as they walk away the names become one with the wall once again, leaving the names behind but their spirit stays with the visitors.

Feeling of the poem...

I believe that the feeling of this poem is sadness. The first sentence of the poem allows us to have insight to what the author was feeling." My black face fades, hiding inside the black granite" The author is feeling like he is disappearing inside the memorial. Then the author continues," I said I wouldn't, dammit: no tears." He was trying to prevent himself from crying. Instead he breaks down when he sees all of the names on Vietnam Memorial. The author is walking and looking at the names all 58,022 and is half expecting his own name to be in letters like smoke. He can not believe that he survived this terrible war. Every name that he passes he sees their faces and the pain that they were in. The last line "A woman's trying to erase names: No, she is brushing a boy's hair." It seems like the woman was the mother of that boy. The only contact that she will ever get from him is touching is name. In this There is nothing put sadness and pain in this poem. No hope, no happiness, just pain and sadness.

The attitude of "Facing It"

The attitude in the poem is respect. "A white vet's image floats, closer to me , then his pale eyes look through me" This quotation shows the author has respect for the fallen soldiers. He is picturing the Vet when he could be thinking about anything else. Also, in the poem he goes on saying that he went down 58,022 names. If he did not have a respectful attitude then he would have not have given the entire number of names.

soliders. He is taking the time to

Theme

People need to realize that soldiers are important. We need to mourn their loss and honor their memory. Without a soldier's sacrifice The United States would not exist. We need to always honor our military.
The quote in the poem that brings this to my attention, "Names shimmer on a woman's blouse but when she walks away the names stay on the wall." We need to make sure that we always take their names with us, and not leave them behind.

My take aways

Untitled Slide

• Always give respect to the military.
• I will put myself in their shoes.
• I will remember that I am free because of someone else's sacrifice.
• I will remember the fallen soldiers, and not walk away.
• I will be sensitive to others that are grieving.

This poem has opened my eyes to how callous I truly was to the military. In the poem the author placed himself right there with the fallen soldiers. He might have been a solider himself, but he made sure that he paid his respects to all 58,022. He would stop and think of their sacrifices. I need to think more often of the people that have died to make sure my freedom is intact . I want to give my respects to all the living and fallen soldiers.

Work Cited

"Yusef Komunyakaa – Facing It." Genius. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. komunyakaa-facing-it-annotated>.